It is one of my favorite things, and it always makes me smile just thinking about it -- David getting out of his chair in the morning to go and re-fill his coffee mug. He pauses, lifts his arms up, and stretches, making all the appropriate sounds to go along with it. Miss Milia loves doing this in exactly the same manner. And even though Grandpa David doesn't know it, I've been telling her that she stretches just like him ever since she was a month or so old. It warms my heart to no end.
Anyway, I'm just now easing my way back in to running. I began with a short hiatus (on account of the fact that I just plain didn't feel like it) which quickly turned into four or five months in all. Shameful, I know. But I'm back in the game now -- new patella band and all! In fact, Michael is even running with us on the weekends, and we've even pulled out all of our old yoga and pilates dvds. It's been great fun doing them together. Emilia calls it 'yogo' and has actually mastered the downward facing dog. However, it seems to be best if we do our 'yogo' or pilates after she's gone down to bed. She likes to jump on you and generally make a nuisance of her little self in our rather small study, where we've been trying to 'get fit.' Aaaah, good times. But it does help one to feel better, that's for sure. I know I've said it before, but running is the best form of stress-management I've ever come across. It works like a charm, too. While the other stuff (namely the yoga) is just plain good for you. And to top it off, it has been nice to spend time with Michael doing this stuff. (Usually he goes to the gym by his office, where he gets hit on by all the men.)
And so, in the name of getting all fit and healthy -- and just trying to take better care of ourselves -- I've been cooking some ridiculously healthy (and rather homey) dinners as of late. Well, that's not true. I've always cooked in a rather healthy way. But I really need to cook in a way that Emilia will appreciate, as well. It is beyond exhausting when she has a fit with what is on the table at night. She really is a good little eater, as a general rule -- particularly if there is a Neapolitan meatball anywhere within her sight. But she seems to draw the line with most recipes from Ottolenghi, which is unfortunate for her, as I've been doing so many lately. (Plenty has quickly become one of my favorite cookbooks ever.)
The carrot soup I made a few nights ago was a hit -- all three of us loved it. We had it two nights in a row with different breads each night. The first night I made a polenta rosemary bread, which sounds so much better than it actually was. And last night we had Irish soda bread with it, which was the true winner. It was so lovely to sit and eat in peace, for a change.
The recipe I used is from Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
, albeit heavily changed. And I was so happy with the result that this is how I intend to do it from now on. It is basically the first half of the Carrot Soup with Onion Relish, meaning I skipped the onion relish. But to give the soup enough body and to make it a bit more substantial, I added quite a few more carrots than suggested. (In fact, I used every beautiful carrot from the picture above.) Then I added about half a cup of 2% milk right before serving. Also, I used my immersion blender for a minute or so because it thickened the soup up a bit. However, don't over puree it. You'll want a lot of the carrot pieces left intact. 
serves 4 to 6
2 tablespoons olive oil, butter, or a mixture
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 pound carrots, diced (I'm fairly certain that I used about 5 pounds in total, and I'd do it again, too.)
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
3 tablespoons white rice
1 teaspoon sweet paprika (I used my Spanish paprika, which wasn't sweet, but very good.)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground coriander
salt and freshly ground pepper
7 cups water; or vegetable stock with an extra cup of water. (I used 4 cups chicken broth and 3 cups water.)
In a big pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, bay leaf, parsley, and rice. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the spices, ½ teaspoon salt, some pepper, and cook for 5 minutes more. Add the water and/or broth, bring it to a boil, and simmer, partially covered for 25 minutes. At this point, I used my immersion blender and then added a rather large splash of milk. Adjust the seasoning and serve. (Recipe from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison. Broadway Books, 1997.)
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